Bureau Of Missing Persons (1933)

A tough cop (Pat O'Brien) with rather thuggish methods is transferred to the missing persons bureau. When a pert blonde (Bette Davis) comes in looking for her missing husband, he decides to handle the case himself. But there's something suspicious about that blonde ... just what is she up to? This is a fast talking snappy little "B" that Warners churned out on a regular basis in the early 1930s. Amusing, colorful characters with just the right amount of mystery to keep you hooked. It's also as disposable as Kleenex. But that's okay because the movie was never designed to be anything but a quick Saturday night programmer, in for a week and out. The Warners stock company of character actors are all here: Glenda Farrell, Allen Jenkins, Ruth Donnelly among them. It's kind of frightening to think what might have happened to Davis's career if OF HUMAN BONDAGE hadn't rescued her the following year. But she and O'Brien have a nice chemistry and their bantering is amiable. Directed by Roy Del Ruth (BROADWAY MELODY OF 1936). With Lewis Stone (borrowed from MGM), Hugh Herbert and George Chandler.